The Mara
by infinitesimal
Summary: The newest addition to the Phantomhive staff: a mute maid.  What's her story?   OC. no pairings.
1. Ceylon

Light steps approached.  
>A faint knocking resonated.<br>"Come in."  
>The door opened.<br>A cart rolled into the room.  
>"Thank you, Mirana."<br>The door was closed.  
>Light steps retreated.<p>

* * *

><p>Sebastian calmly poured tea for his master, but then he righted the teapot, halting the flow of the scalding liquid into the porcelain cup, "My Lord, may I ask you a question?"<p>

"You just did."

He put on a fake smile, showing that he did not appreciate Ciel's attitude, "What compelled you to hire Mirana?"

"Serve me my tea," Ciel frowned.

Sebastian nodded and continued to pour the Ceylon tea into the porcelain cup. When the teacup was about three-fourths full, it was positioned upon a matching saucer and placed down upon Ciel's desk.

After taking a sip, Ciel brought the cup down, "Delicious."

"You have been favoring Ceylon tea recently, my Lord."

"Mirana started preparing it for me, and I must admit that I do enjoy it," he took another sip.

Sebastian nodded, "Ceylon, I'm sure you remember, was also Madame Red's variety of choice."

"That would explain Mirana's skill in preparing it so well," he put the teacup down upon the matching saucer.

An evil smirk came to Sebastian's face, "Was it for atonement?"

"No," Ciel redirected his eyes from his cup to his butler, "The only reason that she was unemployed was because of Madame Red. If Madame Red had not been so foolish as to commit crimes that I would have to investigate, Mirana might still have a job as the Barnett maid. I only took her in because she had taken wonderful care of Madame Red's home. I'm sure you noticed when we looked at Barnett Manor."

"Of course, sir. Every surface was free of dust. All vases were polished to perfection. The food was also prepared to a level of extreme satisfaction using crops from the garden outside. I understand, my Lord. She makes up for the others." He declared the last statement in a spiteful voice.

Ciel seemed to be in a trance as he picked up his cup again, "What would I have to atone Madame for?"

"My Lord, would you like-"

"The fact still remains…" Ciel trailed off, aimlessly pressing the cup to his lip, "A quiet one, is she not?"

"Just shy, maybe," Sebastian suggested.

He took another gulp and then began to inspect the cup. It had a rather boring exterior design; it was white with a golden rim. But when one picked it up to drink from it, one could see the intricate rose pattern engraved upon the inside of the cup. "Or perhaps she is mute?"

"If that is the case, my Lord, why not ask her?"

"Good-" he put his cup down and frowned, "That's not funny, Sebastian... Stop grinning; it looks foolish."

Ciel then rang the bell.

"My Lord?"

"I'm only following your advice, Sebastian."


	2. Reluctance

She took a breath. Her hand was lifted to make contact with the door and release a resonating, faint knocking. However, it did not. Someone on the inside had opened the door.

"Ah, Mirana, good," Sebastian put on another fake smile. After opening the door wider, he motioned for her to walk in.

Ciel sat behind his desk with a critical look in his eyes.

With light steps, she approached the watchdog. His ever-watchful eyes noted the calmness in her strides as she floated in front of his desk. Her grey eyes avoided his cerulean dagger.

"Mirana, how long have you worked here now?"

She held up five fingers upon her black-gloved hand.

Ciel picked up his teacup, "What does that mean?"

"Five weeks, my Lord," Sebastian clarified.

Mirana sent a small nod of appreciation towards him.

Ciel shot him a dirty look, then sent his eye back upon her, "Well, Mirana, you have adjusted very well to the manor and its requirements. But, there are things that worry me..." He put his cup down with such hostility that a shard of porcelain was chipped from the cup's bottom.

She stood up straight and put her hands down at her sides. Her fists clenched up and she shut her eyes. The expression on her face seemed to show that she knew what would happen.

"Mirana," Ciel stood up and crossed in front of his desk, "I do not want to have to repeat myself again. You must-"

A loud rapping at the wooden door interrupted his sentence.

Mirana curtsied slightly and backed away towards the door with the same light steps. She twirled around before the door, opening it in a swift motion.

Mey-Rin stood before her, "Miss Mirana, this just came in for Lord Phantomhive."

She delicately took up the silver tray from Mey-Rin and shut the door. Light steps brought it in front of her master.

Ciel frowned upon its passenger, a letter. With reluctance, he reached towards the smooth envelope. He was focusing on the seal, and the look upon his face indicated that he already knew what the letter was about.

"Sir," Sebastian hissed, "You are not deceiving anyone."

"Tch," Ciel snagged the letter and ripped it open. The hand that held the letter tensed with excitement.

"Shall I have the carriage prepared?" Sebastian smirked.

Ciel sighed, leaning back on his desk, "Very well. Mirana, prepare my bags."

Mirana curtsied slightly and backed towards the door with the silver tray still in hand.

"Mirana?"

She looked up.

"Prepare your things, too. You're coming with us."

Despite her bulging eyes, she calmly nodded and continued on light steps to the door.

Sebastian held the door open for her, "Mirana."

She nodded to him and then exited.

Light steps fled down the hallway.

Ciel dropped the letter upon the desk, "She's just weird. If I could scare her so easily..."


	3. Distance

Ciel walked out towards the carriage followed by his newer maid. He ignored Sebastian's hand and swiftly stepped into the vehicle.

"You must be growing, my Lord," Sebastian declared.

Mirana gave him a slight glance of amusement, but then resumed her normal placid expression. She permitted him to help her into the carriage.

She sat down opposite Ciel and leaned against the window. Sebastian entered as well and sat next to Mirana.

Her eyes closed suddenly.

"Mirana, are you-"

She sat up straight, and that was enough to stop Sebastian from asking whatever question was prompted by her action.

At the sound of a whip, the whinny of a horse, and the cry of the driver, the carriage set forth towards London.

* * *

><p>Even though she did not make any noise, Ciel registered her yawn.<p>

"You are tired," Ciel decided, "Sleep."

She shook her head aggressively, sending strands of brown hair in front of her face.

"Really," Sebastian cooed, "You may sleep if you want."

She shook her head and then yawned again. A frown appeared on her face.

Ciel sighed, "Mirana, I order you to rest."

She nodded. Thud. Her head hit the side of the carriage.

Ciel watched as her blinks became progressively longer. Each time she closed her eyelids, the period in which she saw blackness increased. Soon, relaxed breaths flowed with the rise and fall of her diaphragm.

"Has she been working hard?"

Sebastian nodded, "You have too, my Lord. Do not discredit yourself. Perhaps you should also rest."

His master merely peered out the window, "No."

"Don't worry, my Lord. I shall be watching the scenery. If you were to sleep, I would never notice."

Within a matter of a few minutes, Ciel was sleeping. The light nap turned into a long over-due doze as his eyelids began to flicker calmly.

Sebastian stared at the evolving landscape. The meadows would turn to forests, forests to wastelands, wastelands to farms, farms to towns, towns to London. Then on the ride back, it would be the reverse. As they progressed closer to London, the sun reached high in the sky, then began to dip down. They would reach their destination after dark.

His concentration was then shattered.

Her right hand twitched, each finger tensing uncontrollably.

"Isn't that interesting?" he pondered out loud. Carefully, he picked up the misbehaving gloved hand. It seemed to stop moving, but the muscles were still tense. With delicateness, he began to remove the black glove. After viewing her forearm, however, he immediately pulled the glove back to its proper place and placed her arm on the other side of her body away from him. He shifted his weight and changed the way he was sitting creating distance between the two of them.

"It appears I will not be able to observe the scenery now..."


	4. Possession

He stopped walking.

Sebastian nearly walked into him.

"Something is distracting you, Sebastian. We just passed two stray cats and you did not admire them. There must be something substantial on your mind."

"My Lord, excuse me. I must be a little bit tired fro-"

"I order you to tell me."

"Very well. My Lord, I fear that Mirana-"

Ciel laughed and turned away, "Never mind. I believe we already decided that she was merely peculiar." He walked with a quicker pace, his butler's dawdling had slowed them down. Then Ciel, once again, stopped walking. Sebastian's shadow was not following him. He turned to see in the same spot as before. "Alright, if it is that important, tell me. What is it about that you must tell me about Mirana? What has been possessing your mind so?"

There was no response.

"You were so distracted by it before, and now you can not even find words? I don't have time for this, Sebastian," he walked further down the sidewalk.

"My Lord, she's cursed."

For the third time in that short period, Ciel froze in his tracks.


	5. Revelations

He had claimed to be feeling rather ill after hearing of Sebastian's knowledge and demanded to be taken back to the townhouse.

"Are you positive, Sebastian?" Ciel fell back into his chair.

"Yes, my Lord."

"Leave me."

"Yes, my Lord," he turned the door knob and went into the hallway then turned, "Will you be needing anything?"

"...Tea," Ciel moaned.

"Yes, my Lord," he bowed and began to shut the door.

"HAVE HER MAKE IT!" he added quickly.

The door closed, and then re-opened.

"Yes, my Lord."

There was a light patting sound made as the door and door frame met again.

Deep breaths did not calm down whatever mysterious sensation had flooded his conscience.

* * *

><p>Sebastian wandered downstairs towards the kitchen, which emanated a wonderful scent. She had gone to the market that morning, and was preparing lunch last he remembered. Alas, there was one pot on the stove with a wooden spoon sticking out of whatever broth was simmering. Other than the fragrances of paprika and tomatoes, Sebastian was alone.<p>

After a bit more wandering through the various rooms in the townhouse, he poked his head into her small chamber on the first floor, only to pull away. He briefly observed the dull yellow paint that was chipping in various places, the dusty furniture, and the plain maid. He peeked back in, his eyes again falling upon the dull maid who sat adding up expenses in the butler's notebook. He walked to her side and observed her right hand trembling while writing neat numerals.

He looked down the list of groceries. He could see how after every few words, her handwriting switched into a series of odd markings. Now, while adding up the numbers, she was having trouble controlling her handwriting.

"Remarkable."

She slammed the notebook shut.

"My apologies, Mirana. I did not mean to startle you. But... who could have imagined that our quiet maid would be such an amazing bargainer?" He took the notebook from her calmly, "I am impressed, Mirana! Do not worry about the addition, I can do this chore later, as the young master has requested for you to prepare tea for him."

She released a silent sigh.

* * *

><p>"My Lord, may I enter?"<p>

"Do you have my tea?"

"No, but-" Sebastian entered slowly and approached his master who now sat his desk reviewing miscellaneous papers that were related to the current case, "-I have something here you might want to review," he put the book down on top of the pile in front of Ciel.

He looked at the list and responded in choppy statements, "She's a fine bargainer, for a mute. Mirana's handwriting? Awfully neat- it sickens me. Those markings are quite odd... Oriental perhaps? I would summon Lau, but I do not want to deal with him. Mirana can answer for this later. Now is not the time to disturb me."

Sebastian nodded and removed the book to a side table.

"This case is not worth my time, Sebastian," Ciel leaned forward over the desk, "This Oriental obsession has caught on with all of the nobles and even Her Highness. While I do not support this exhibit, I am obligated to go as a sign of respect for the Queen. And it is because of her that I must investigate this Tibetan painting. We're going to see it tomorrow."

"When is this exhibit?"

"Three weeks from now."

Sebastian picked up a random stack of papers and recited, "Two men onboard with the pieces were found dead near it when the ship pulled into port. Similar fates have befallen those who have guarded the painting for long periods. What is the painting of, my Lord?"

"Some Buddhist deity..."

"Harmless*," Sebastian murmured.

"...known as the Mara."

As he finished the statement, a harsh knock echoed upon the door.

"Yes?"

Mirana entered the room with the teacart. She moved it to the side of Ciel's desk and then curtsied.

"Thank you, Mirana."

She curtsied again and then began to do her backwards walk to the door.

"Oh, Mirana?"

She stopped and nodded.

"I wish to resume the talk that we began back at the Manor," Ciel hissed.

Sebastian glanced down at his master as the smooth amber mixture filled the blue teacup.

She stood up straight and walked before his desk.

"I will only ask this once, do you speak?"

She did not respond.

"My Lord-,"Sebastian put the saucer down upon his desk.

His voice began to rise in volume as he spat her name, "Mirana..."

She shook her head, indicating a negative answer to the question.

"Hmmm... I order you to speak."

She bowed her head in sorrow and shame.

"What is it? A vow of silence?"

Her gray eyes turned up towards the ceiling as she nodded.

"Will you not indicate what made you take such a vow? More importantly, why hadn't you indicated this before?"

She nodded and took off her glove before rolling up her sleeves to reveal strange characters wrapping around her forearm. They swirled around the shape of what appeared to be a dead tree.

"What on earth is that?"

Sebastian picked up her arm and inspected it with great precision, his fingers tracing each strange marking,"She's been cursed."

She pulled away from him and a look appeared upon her face that yelled, "STOP TOUCHING ME."

"My apologies, Mirana."

She nodded as sign of understanding. She walked over to one of the bookshelves, obviously set on finding a specific book. After a little bit of rummaging, she found what she wanted.

She threw the book down; an atlas lay on before them. There was something she was looking for... After peeling over maps, she finally stopped on a large map of northern India. There was a word at the top that she pointed at repeatedly.

"Tibet?"

She nodded and pointed to her arm and back to the map.

Ciel frowned, "You're from Tibet?"

She shook her head and pointed to the markings on her arm, jabbing them with her gloved hand.

"The markings..." Ciel was becoming exasperated quickly.

She nodded and then pointed back to the map.

Sebastian nodded, "The markings are in Tibetan."

She nodded.

"Buddhist curses," Sebastian reached out to her arm again and hesitated briefly, "May I?"

She nodded.

He picked her arm up and looked at the markings, "My Lord, do you know the story of the Mara?"

Mirana hit Sebastian repeatedly with her left hand, the gloved hand.

Ciel shook his head, "I do not. Do you, Sebastian? Mirana, stop."

"Yes, my Lord."

She scowled, following his order.

"Edify me," he picked up his teacup and began to indulge in the taste and tale.

Sebastian rubbed his gloved hand over the markings again, "Mara was the king of the dead during the time of the Siddhartha Gautama, who would later become the Buddha. Mara was outraged at a mortal's gaining of enlightenment. Why did a human deserve such power?"

Sebastian glided his palm over the tree's trunk. Mirana's arm tensed and twitched slightly at his touch.

The left corner of Ciel's small mouth curved upward forming a smirk upon his small face.

"The Lord Buddha spent many years sitting underneath a tree, meditating," his fingers spread apart following the path of the dead tree's branches, "During his meditation, Mara, the king of all evil, appeared before the Buddha to tempt him with women and distract him by sending an army of spirits to attack him." His hand surrounded her tiny wrist completely.

Ciel put his teacup down upon its saucer, "And?"

"He failed," Sebastian's ligaments retracted and he gently let go of her arm, "Mara questioned Siddhartha Gautama's legitimacy as one to be enlightened. The earth responded to Mara confirming Siddhartha's right. Then dawn came and the Buddha reached enlightenment. Mara was left-"

"Mirana, I'm hungry, prepare lunch."

She nodded and shook her sleeves back down.

"Please use the Oriental porcelain," Ciel rubbed his forehead and said sheepishly, "I am following that Oriental trend after all..."

Once again she nodded, curtsying slightly. As she made her way to the door backwards, she slid her glove back upon her arm.

* * *

><p>It was not until after he heard her heavy steps fade that Sebastian continued his explanation.<p>

"Mara is a demon."

"That explains quite a bit. Her reaction to your touch is especially telling,"Ciel leaned back in his chair, "Do tell, what happened to Mara?"

"He did reappear again but was little more than a fly to shoo away."

"A great king of the demons reduced to that of a nuisance. His legacy is embarrassing."

"Nowadays, he is blamed by Buddhists whenever one falters in one's religious practices."

Ciel turned his chair towards the window, "Mirana, just what happened to you?"

* * *

><p><em>Note from the Author<em>:

First, let it be known that I hate author's notes because they interrupt the flow of the story... but here I am being a flagrant hypocrite.

*Being a practicing Buddhist, I do not view this statement as offensive. Actually, I see this remark as being loyal to Sebastian's character. After all, while talking with Agni, I believe, Sebastian comments on how useless gods are. (I recall this occurring in the anime).

...Goodness, now that I've started making excuses for myself, let me also include the following: English is not my first or second language, so grammar and punctuation WILL suck.

Sorry, I hope I will never have to insert one of these pesky things again.

I appreciate the comments that I have received. Thank you !


	6. Control

In silence, he sat reconsidering all of the garbled details that had been thrown at him.

"They are connected," Ciel frowned, picking up his tea cup,"The matter of the painting and the maid..." Between sips of tea, Ciel hissed, "Yes...Mara is practically the Buddhist equivalent of the Devil. And Mirana has him in her arm."

Ciel put his cup down.

CRASH. Shards of delicate material fell upon the floor.

But, his teacup was still in tact.

* * *

><p>Whatever soup she had made before now was splattered on the kitchen floor along with tomatoes, broken glass, and the blood of six bodies.<p>

"Mara, you've made quite the mess."

Mirana's gray eyes did not contain their usual placidity as they glowered at the butler. Her right hand, the cursed hand, was clenched around a long kitchen knife. She strode towards him quickly with the blade extended in the direction of his pale neck.

"Thank you," he caught her wrist and moved her sleeve upwards to observe the tree, "Mirana, can you regain control? Mara's tree is glowing red."

* * *

><p>"Mirana has cleaned up the kitchen. And the windows will have new panes by tomorrow."<p>

"I could not care less about the state of the kitchen, Sebastian."

"My Lord-"

"Sebastian, you do realize that upon the bodies was the mark... the same mark that I have. And all of them, all that broke into the kitchen, had guarded the painting of the Mara- you should recognize their faces from the pictures. They came here to attack Mirana or the Mara. We are going back to Phantomhive Manor."

* * *

><p>Sitting in the carriage, Ciel took immediate notice of how puzzled she was. Her right eyebrow curled up in disbelief while her pupils concentrated on the bits of the horizon that stuck out from the forest's cloak.<p>

"Mirana, are you alright?"

Her head whipped around in a fluid motion to address him with a nod, and after adjusting her body to face him as well, she nodded again as a sign of reassurance in her remark.

He redirected his gaze to the same sights that she had concentrated on. The trees were becoming more dense and the bits of horizon that had fascinated her were unable to pierce through the thickness that now surrounded the carriage. With reluctance, he peeled his eyes away from the scenery and back to Mirana.

She was waving her hands and snapping her fingers.

"What are you doing?" Ciel found himself awfully close to laughing.

She frowned, frustrated. With a brief wave of her hands, she conveyed the message to him: Never mind. Then she bowed her head again to apologize.

He frowned, "Were you trying to get my attention?"

She brought her hand a bit above her right shoulder and in a clean fashion brought it to the same spot above her left shoulder. She had pantomimed the action of cutting her neck. The message was clear: FORGET ABOUT IT.

"Throats are slit?" Ciel teased.

Mirana rolled her eyes and a simper came to her face. He referenced the fate of the six zombies that broke into the kitchen.


End file.
